Spicy Anchovy Sandwiches
The sauce for our Spicy Anchovy Sandwiches is made both tangy and spicy by mixing the anchovy brine with pomegranate molasses, garlic and chili flakes.
About This Recipe
Makes: Two sandwiches
Skill Level: Medium
In Istanbul, at the mouth of the Bosporus Strait, boats tied to the quay sell balik ekmek or fish in bread. The sandwich consists of grilled fresh fish—often mackerel—placed inside half a loaf of bread with a mix of lettuce, tomato and onions and a punchy pomegranate-molasses sauce. Our version, using anchovies canned in a spicy, tangy brine, makes a sauce using that brine to make the sandwich even simpler.
Ingredients
- 1 small red onion, thinly sliced crosswise to yield about ¼ cup onion rings
- 1 tsp. lemon juice
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 (6-in.) sections of wide baguette or 2 (6-in.) crusty rolls, split horizontally
- About ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 can Patagonia Provisions Spicy White Anchovies
- 1 large garlic clove, grated or minced
- 2 tsp. pomegranate molasses
- ¼ to ½ tsp. red chili flakes
- 1 medium tomato, thinly sliced
- Handful of salad greens (arugula, watercress, anything you have around)
- ½ medium carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks
- Handful of fresh mint leaves
Putting It All Together
- Preheat the oven or toaster oven to 400°.
- Put the onion rings in a small bowl. Toss them with lemon juice and a fat pinch of salt to soften the onion’s bite.
- Brush the cut sides of the bread with olive oil and toast them, cut sides up, in the oven until golden, about 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the sauce: Open the tin of anchovies and use a fork to carefully lift them onto a plate. Pour the juice into a bowl. Whisk in 2 tbsp. oil, garlic, chili flakes and pomegranate molasses; add salt and pepper to taste.
- Heat the remaining 1 tbsp. oil in a medium frying pan on medium-high. When the oil is shimmering, add the anchovies. Cook the anchovies, turning them halfway through, until they are crisp and browned, 3 to 4 minutes total.
- Drizzle the bottom halves of the toasted bread with some sauce. Top the bread with the onions, tomato slices and anchovies. Toss the rest of the sauce with the arugula, carrots and mint, mound the mixture on top of the anchovies and close the sandwiches.
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